LME 059 – A Summer Pause with Perspective
It’s summer.
And for once, my calendar is quiet: On purpose.
A Conscious Pause
I’ve decided to take a proper break this summer.
Starting at the end of July, I’ve cleared four full weeks in which I won’t be taking on any client appointments.
No trainings.
No coaching.
No podcast interviews.
Why?
Because I want to create space.
Space for unfinished projects.
Space for new ideas.
And most importantly – space for myself.
I’ll be staying home, working at my own pace on things that usually fall through the cracks.
And yes – I’ll even take care of a few long-postponed repairs around the house!
This also means:
There will be no new podcast episodes – neither in German nor in English – until mid or late August.
But don’t worry – I’m not disappearing.
In fact, I’m preparing a lot of new things for the second half of the year. Let me give you a short outlook.
What’s Coming After the Break?
First:
In the next two weeks, we’ll roll out the English BETA version of “Ask Bernd”, our leadership chatbot – both text- and voice-based.
If you’re part of the BETA English Leadership Crash Course, you’ll be among the first to test it.
The feedback from the German version has been amazing. So I’m really excited to see how the English version performs.
Second:
I’m currently preparing podcast episodes in advance and we have a full plan until the end of October.
That means you can look forward to fresh weekly content coming your way packed with insights and real-world leadership topics.
Third:
We’re starting a new webinar series on AI and Leadership in late August. The first English webinar goes live on September 4th.
Fourth:
At the end of September, my team and I will attend the Membership Growth Conference in Newcastle, England.
We will spend two days networking and learning at the conference and then stay two more days for our internal strategic planning.
If you’re attending the conference, don’t be shy, feel free to come and say hello.
Fifth:
In October, I’ll be traveling again – this time to India and Dubai for ten days, including some time on-site with one of my international clients.
Sixth:
And then in early November, I’ll be back in England attending the Long Haul Leadership Conference with Chris Ducker in Cambridge.
I actually recorded a great podcast conversation with Chris about his new book and this event recently. I’ll drop the link for that episode in the show notes as well.
If you’ll be at the conference, I’d love to connect. Don’t hesitate to reach out. I’m looking forward to meeting you in person.
And last but not least:
We’ll be officially launching the English version of our Leadership Crash Course in October!
The feedback from our BETA testers has already been outstanding and we haven’t even included the new “Ask Bernd” feature yet.
There’ll be a few free English webinars as part of the launch. So stay tuned if you want to join live!
The best way to make sure you don’t miss anything is to sign up for my newsletter. That way, you’ll be the first to get all the updates.
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My 3 Learnings from Taking Time Off
So as you can tell, a lot will be happening after the break. That’s why this pause in August is so important to me.
It’s not the first time I’ve taken a summer like this, but this one feels especially valuable.
Let me share three key things I’ve once again been reminded of during this downtime:
- You can only grasp something new if your hands are free.
When we’re always “on”, we block ourselves from deep thinking and creativity. I need this space to reflect and move forward strategically. - Your team grows when you step back.
The absence of the leader often presents the greatest growth opportunity for the team. Trust over control – even when it’s hard – really does work. - Long-term success requires rest.
It sounds simple, but it’s not. If you want to perform sustainably, you need to recharge. This isn’t about doing nothing it’s about intentional stillness.
